A new five-metre high interactive installation responds to the built environment of the Victoria Cross intersection in North Sydney and is a great selfie spot.
North Sydney Council commissioned the new work by artist couple Warren Langley and Julia Davis.
The sculptural form, angles of incidence, is composed of differently angled planes of a reflective, interactive, safety glass referencing the multiplicity of reflections on a faceted surface.
Says Davis: “The dialogue between the sculpture and its surroundings is a metaphor for the ‘interactions’ that have happened on this site from its pre-colonial past to the commercial and entertainment precinct it is now.”
These include the mix of architecture of the place, from the James Barnett designed 1889 post office and the 1931 HSBC Bank building designed by John Reid and Sons, to the mid 20th century 105 Miller Street block by Bates, Smart and McCutcheon and the DHG International/Rice Daubney Architects Greenwood Tower. Its located close to the new metro station.*
Says Langley: “To embed the concept with a sense of site specificity the form has been loosely based upon a small quartz grain from the underlying sandstone of the area.”
The deep blue installation transforms its appearance in accord with the surrounding light level. Images of the changing sky, surrounding buildings, landscape and passing people and cars are captured on its faceted surface. By continuously reflecting its changing surrounds the artwork becomes an active participant in the urban landscape.
By night, it changes from a reflective form into a glowing icon, a marker point, a location finder, an announcement. A blue LED light source creates a glowing icon of extraordinary visual beauty. Blue is the colour of calm and of infinity, a reference to the past, present and future importance of this site as a place of social and physical intersection/convergence.
Revolutionary digital glass technology was used enabling the artists to fabricate the glass to the exact colour desired.
Added Langley: “Whether the viewer experience is pedestrian or vehicular, the artwork displays a completely different day time and night time persona. The two way mirror effect of the deep blue glass by day transforms into a glowing icon of beauty by night.”
“Whilst the work is one of subtle optical transitions it is in fact a dramatic presence with a potent ability to actively engage in the narratives of the site,” Davis added.
The work is in the just launched North Sydney Council's Public Art Trail, with 18 sites. http://www.northsydney.nsw.gov.au/Community_Services/Arts_Culture/Public_Art/North_Sydney_Public_Art_Trail
